The Early Bird Caught The Worm

Some Thoughts On A Long Lens…..

I’ve been living with this lens (see previous post) for five days now and have taken a lot of photos. So some thoughts on the lens. First, its incredibly heavy. My usual lens is so light compared to this guy. I really can’t image taking this on a vacation and doing the tourist thing. No way (not to mention no bag to carry it in, at least not safely. More on that below.) This lens is designed for photojournalists. It would be great at a sporting event, even in the shitty seats. Good luck getting in though with out a press pass. For a photojournalists in a war zone this could get you a great shot and not get yourself killed in the process. I’ve been using it to photograph birds. This the first time I ever attempted to capture such quick animals. My cats like being photographed. No, really. Bubbles actually poses for me. Birds are a different story though. They know when you’re there. So I have to sit outside for awhile to I become part of the landscape. Then they show themselves. The only real problem I’ve been having is finding the bird in the viewfinder once I spot him with my eyes. Human vision has a huge field of view of about 140 degrees. My camera lens is anywhere from 8 to 22 degrees. I spend a lot of time searching around. (Mostly I look for angles of branches and such, but it would be really hard to explain it here.) I am getting better at it, though. Too bad the lens goes back Thursday night. Camera shake is not as big as a problem as I thought it would be because I’ve have been shooting mostly at an f/2.8 as I just want the bird. On a bright day that gives me a pretty fast shutter speed. Gods, how I love a fast lens. Here’s a dandelion shot a f/2.8 with a shutter speed of 1/1000.

OK, enough of the bad stuff. How well does this lens work? I’m in love with it. I’ve been getting beautiful images. Of course a lot has to do with the camera itself, but the lens is great. It pulls it right in there. Some cool things on it. It has two focus settings: manual and an auto/ manual. This means you can use manual focus while in auto. Comes in handy when the camera just doesn’t want to focus, you don’t have to switch to manual on both the camera (which would be in the settings menu) and the lens. The VR (vibration reduction) mode also has two settings normal, for shakes, and an active mode. The active is for when you are shooting out of a moving vehicle. Think I’m going to try that tomorrow. When I read it in the lens manual I pictured a photographer hanging out a Land Rover on the African Serengeti chasing a herd of zebra. Another switch on the lens limits the range of the autofocus if the subject is less than 8.2 feet away. As I understand it this speeds up the focus on subjects further than 8.2 feet. I really haven’t played with this setting. Oh, yeah it also has a focus lock on the lens too. Before I go on about the good things of this lens let me say that this thing retails for about $1800 bucks. Here’s some images on my Mobile Me site.

Final verdict, well worth the rental. Hey, if your kid is playing on a hockey or football team its worth the rental. You’ll be glad you did. I think about all the times I wish I had a high powered zoom (or a good 200 mm or 300 mm prime lens) for those certain shots. From now on if I need a high powered lens I’ll rent. However, if you’re off to Disney World stick to a regular zoom, this lens is way too bulky to carry around. (It make a great weapon, though. Have fun getting it on a plane.) You’ll definitely need a big bag. I’ve been using a bag that normally I carry my D60 with its lens attached and a FG with its 50 mm lens attached and the battery charger and a slew of lens filters and a bunch of other shit I’ve accumulated over the years. This week only the D60 with the 70 – 200 mm attached is in the bag. It’s not the best set up but it’ll do. On a separate note been thinking about this bag for my next trip. I like the idea of it being able to switch from backpack to my sided for easy access.

Finally I’ve been thinking a lot about lenses lately and as a graduate of film school, the idea of DSLRs having the capability of capturing moving images in HD is extremely intriguing. With the availability of a lens like this, that puts that HD capability on the list for my next camera (along with a full frame sensor.) Being able to change a lens on the fly is what makes SLRs and by extension DSLRs so useful. Now with being able to capture moving images and have a plethora of available lenses (whether I rent, borrow or buy) makes video cameras almost a dead format to me.

New Lens For Vacation. Yes I’m Back.

I’m back. I’ve neglected this spot for awhile. It’s not that I’ve been terribly busy just lazy. I’m one of these guys that gets online and I’m finished for the day. Its amazing I even finished college. Anyways, I’m housesitting for a friend (actually dog and multiple kitty sitting) who has an awesome yard with a garden. While sitting here one night I came up with the idea to take some pictures of birds. This time of year all the real pretty ones, like cardinals and bluejays, are all over the place. Problem is my Nikon D60’s lens ¹ doesn’t get very close, its max zoom is 55 mm which translates to about 70mm on this DSLR, not to mention its not a really fast lens (f/5.6 at 55 mm.) If I’m going to photograph birds I can’t just walk up to them. So I needed a better lens, preferably a zoom. Ever price Nikon lenses? Yeah, no shit. Then I remembered some sites I bookmarked that actually rent lenses. I settled on Lens Pro To Go. To be totally honest here my choice had nothing to do with price or service. It was about availability of the lens. Period. I wanted a fast high powers telephoto zoom. I have no need for a normal or wide lens for this. I settled on a Nikon AF 70- 200 mm f/2.8 VR. Read up on some reviews and made my decision. They’re charging me $110 for the week and that includes insurance and shipping. Well it arrived this afternoon on Fed Ex. First, its packed in a Pelican case. A nice one.

I always wanted one for my cameras (wonder if they make one for laptops, oh well more time to spend on the net.) Next, this lens is huge and heavy. The package weighs in at 9 pounds and the case barely weighs anything. Its 9 1/2 inches long.

It came with a tripod mount ² Took some pictures this afternoon basically testing it. I’ll post some on my Flckr account. But here’s a sample.

That cardinal is about 30 feet up above me. I did some comparison shots between lenses. It’ll take me a couple of days before I really know if I like it. So far so good. Stay tuned.

1. the D60 comes in a kit or set which includes an 18-55 mm f/3.5-5.6 zoom lens. I love the camera but I really wish I had a better lens. Someday I’ll write about my transition from film to digital. Lets just say I went into the digital photography age kicking and screaming. ↑
2. a lens this big gets mounted on the tripod, not the camera body. Not to mention the lens mount itself swivels. I tried it on a tripod but when shooting birds (yeah, bad choice of words) I have to be holding the camera.] ↑

Why Worry?

Some co-workers and I were talking the other day about the state of the economy. I mean, really what else are people talking about these days. Anyways, I began to notice a sense of panic among them. This kind of thing can become very contagious. I can remember back when I worked for Pan Am just how contagious that line of thought had gotten. ¹ Although one should never say never, I’m not worried at the moment. Even though our volume has seemed to drop, its not such a dramatical drop where we should start running for the caves. But I can tell that some people have never been in this situation before. I have some advice folks. And as some one who has been through this shit before I know what I’m talking about. So my advice to my coworkers, and anyone else reading this blog for that matter, is simple.²
Don’t worry about it. Let me repeat that, OK? Don’t worry about it. There is nothing you can do or change, by yourself that will change economic conditions (unless you’re a billionaire that can buy everything in sight to stimulate the economy.) So why lose hair over it. By the time Pan Am shut down I was grey and balding and not yet thirty. Until they hand you that pink slip (which BTW in my case was a white form letter) no need to freak out about it. Fuck, you still have a job. Live like you do. I spent months upon months of worrying whether I should pay off a credit card or buy things I wanted. To make matters worse my debt to income ratio was completely out of whack (my fault, I’m not blaming anybody for that.) So I went into a tizzy of worry. I traded in my beloved custom van for an Isuzu Imark in a moment of panic. I’ll never be able to make those payments I thought. I also took a beating at the dealership, but thats another story. Want a new car? Go buy it. Why not? You’re employed and can afford it. “What if I get laid off”, you might ask. Well then you’re not going to be able to buy that car now, are you? In fact with that attitude you’ll never get it.
Listen folks, don’t whine about how the economy sucks if you’re not doing anything about it, like spending some of your money. If you haven’t heard three quarters of our system is driven by consumer spending. The other third is businesses keeping up with our spending. Granted its not exactly the most perfect system but hey its what we got. Want to know what I’m doing? My tax refund (along with some saved money is going to be used for a new MacBook Pro and an NAS with about terabyte and a half of storage. We just bought a brand new stove. New windows are going in the house this spring. So, got a few extra bucks in your pocket and want that venti latte from Starbucks? Fuck it, go for it. PC took a shit? Go buy that Mac you’ve been wishing for.
The one thing that sticks in my mind more than anything from my experience at losing a job, and a good one at that, is what my crew chief Darryl said to me. About a month before Pan Am shut down he went and bought a brand new Dodge minivan. I was like, Dude what you crazy? We’re all about to go down with the Titanic here. I filed his response away in my memory knowing that some day it would make some sense.

“Why worry? There’s no debtors prison.” Absolutely fuckin’, right.

1. Pan Am was obviously in worse shape than my present employer, UPS. In fact Pan Am was in the red for what seemed decades. So it was no surprise to almost all of us when she finally folded. However if I had a dollar for every time someone told me we’re shutting down before the end of the month or week I could have retired at thirty.↑
2. The other big difference is that the airline industry tends to be a lot shakier than most industries. Jesus, if some one farts in Iran, airlines in America lose money. Not to mention Pan Am was a lighting rod for terrorist, even before they were flying them into buildings. ↑

On the Passing of John Updike

John Updike, a Lyrical Writer of the Middle-Class Man, Dies at 76 – Obituary (Obit) – NYTimes.com

Sad day, big loss. I consider John Updike as one of America’s greatest writers. I was taking a creative writing class when I was first introduced to his work. It was the short story “A&P.” Sammy, the protagonist, has always been one of my all time favorite characters in literature, right up there with Holden Caufield. Yeah, I’m one of those. In that creative writing class (which by the way is where I fell in love with my wife, Jennifer) we all had to write a research paper. I can’t remember what the parameters had to be but I chose to write about how Sammy was a catalyst to the counter culture that would eventually follow in the later years of the sixties. I later expanded the paper to include Holden Caulfied for another English class at a different school. (I got an A on both papers, BTW.) Updike’s writing has always fascinated me because he made it look easy. As if. The News Hour on PBS has a great interview with John Updike from 2003. In it he talks about Sammy. Actually he’s asked about that short story. Probably because it’s become a staple in English departments nation wide. When he talks about Sammy its as if, for just a moment, he became real person for me. And Updike’s explanation of Sammy feelings in the end helped me recognize I was on the right track in my paper of long ago. So, thanks John for all your works and especially thank you for introducing me to not only Sammy but writing in general.

In Other Things Heard and Seen…

Best ad of the week: Say Goodbye To Mr. Bush

Most expensive lay: Natalie Dylan, a 22-year-old student from San Diego, Calif, auctions off her virginity. Offers are as high as 3.7 million. Hope there’s a money back guarantee.

And something else to sink my heart. Coffee to jump prices 26%. Say it ain’t so, Joe.

Be Careful For What You Wish For…..

Paul Krugman – Forgive and Forget? – NYTimes.com

On one hand I totally agree. We can’t let abuses of power go unpunished. Otherwise we have no right to complain when the next guy (or gal) does it. There is so much to answer for here I really don’t know where to begin. The Iraq fiasco would be a good place to start.
On the other hand Gerald Ford’s reasoning for his pardon of Nixon makes sense to me. Do we really want to spend the next 4 years bickering over Bush’s mistakes when we could be doing something constructive? Yeah, me too.
Lets not forget what Ford said in his inaugural address:

My fellow Americans, our long national nightmare is over.

I know Obama won’t say it but it sure feels that way now.

Best Wishes Steve

Apple’s Chief Is Taking Medical Leave – NYTimes.com

Anyone who knows me knows I’m all about Apple products, especially the Mac. I’m not going to go through the whole mess on whether Steve Jobs has the responsibility to disclose his health condition publicly. Personally I feel its none of my business. I feel that Apple is in a good place with Tim Cook, Philip Schiller and Jonathan Ive. Dan Moren over at MacWorld has a good take on this. I would say this though, as person who worked for Pan Am I am very well aware of a CEO that is synonymous with his company. Some say Juan T. Trippe kept Pan Am in his head. I hope this isn’t the case at Apple, but I really don’t think so. There is an insightful quote in the Times article:

By all accounts, Mr. Cook does not have the long-term vision or showmanship of Mr. Jobs, who appears capable of peering around corners into the future of technology, and can whip crowds into a frenzy merely by taking something new out of his pocket.

That kind of personality can’t be replaced. Now is the wake up call for all of us, for a day we all know will someday day come.
In the meantime get well Steve. Best wishes.

New Lighting for Living Room

Well we just spent a shit load of cash (actually not) on redecorating our living room. For the longest time we had a set of Christmas lights that we strung across the ceiling. It was cool because it gave a soft light in the room and made TV watching bearable without the glare. Problem was they were old and when one bulb went out it took a whole string with it. Good luck finding replacement bulbs (I think the set is about ten years old.) We decided to go with candles. Soft light, cheap, and most importantly is you don’t have to rewire anything. It actually turned out real well. Here’s a look see.
Oh yeah, Jen decided to get her hands done in henna. Although I’m not a big fan of such things I do admit it looks real well. Check it out here
Well we finally finished Mad Men and I must say its awesome. All fan of Don Draper should check this site out. Jen is going to usesome of the episodes from the first season for her Persuasion class this spring. We had to come up with a creative way for her students to watch it. I mean you can’t expect them to buy a complete DVD set. Solution: iTunes. Three episodes at 2 bucks each. Hell they spend more than that on texting for shits sake. And who doesn’t have iTunes these days, especially in college.
Just started (finally) to watch Band Of Brothers this week. Wow. Let you know How I feel about it later.

Another Year Is Over

Well another year is come and gone and now is the obligatory time to reflect on one’s past. Fortunately, my birthday falls between Christmas and New Years so my self reflection seems more timely (then again I really don’t know any other way.) 2008 was a good year for Jen and I. The both of us have decided that Portland, OR is going top be our next home. This is after spending two weeks in that state.

I must say that the two of us have become more home bodies than anything else. We go out less and spend more quality time together now than we ever had, even when we were dating. With our four crazy cats life is really settled for us. Jesus, we rarely go to the movies any more, and I have a degree in film studies. It must a function of the net and Netflix. When we do go out its to spend time with friends and sometimes family. But mostly friends. Looking back at this year our relationship with a couple across town has become closer (you know who you are). They are our best friends because we share the same values in life. Jen and I are thankful for them. OK, enough of the wishy washy stuff.

Speaking of home, we’ve done some work to the house that we are sure will help its value when the time comes, if it comes. In fact the idea of parting with this place doesn’t really please me so it might end up being a rental. Living in a college town has its advantages.

Jen is busy working on her PHd, while I’ve been busy working on, well just working and playing. But that doesn’t mean I’ve haven’t come closer to things I want to pursue once Jen graduates. I rediscovered photography again finally moving into the digital age (kicking and screaming I might add.) I’m hoping that a MFA in photography is my future, but nothing is in my planned outlook.

What a crazy year its been here. The election simply galvanized this town and became a major part of my life all fall. I can’t remember where the month of October went. I think I literally spent from Labor day to election day online. It was fucking insane. I actually got into email discussions that lasted all day like chat rooms. I think I can say that this was the first election in internet time. Really. I’m looking forward to the next administration, and I wish him (and by extension the rest of the country) good luck. We’re gonna need it. But I feel for the first time in my life I voted for the right guy. I know he’s gonna fuck up here and there but I trust him. That’s all that matters.

The other big story for America has been the economy. Well needless to say its the same here. But I must say this: I still have a job and I’m thankful for that. And I must add that I’m probably one of a very few Americans who doesn’t have anxiety about getting laid off. By sheer luck or what, I’ve been at UPS now 13 years. Even as a part time employee (my only job I might add) I’m doing fine. Bills are paid one time and we’re not starving. UPS, as of right now anyway, seems to be chugging along fine as the economy implodes around us. There are probably plenty of reasons for this but who knows why anything works anyway. Peak (the official UPS term for “The Christmas Season”) was as busy as it has been since I transfered here. If it wasn’t on the news I would have never known that the Christmas sale season was off this year. Looks like I picked the right company thirteen and a half years ago. It helps that Jen and I refuse to live beyond our means. With the exception of my love for a certain computer company’s toys I never really over spend my money.

So what’s on the list for next year? Well another two week trip to Portland. More time with our friends, especially when the next season of Mad Men starts. Definitely, new windows for the house in the spring and some landscaping work (maybe redoing the living room, too.) Jen will be done with all her course work and heading into her quals. Oh yeah, one of those unibody MacBook Pros and maybe a home server to boot. I can dream can’t I?

Wish I Thought Of This

Very funny light set up in the form of The Flying Spaghetti Monste on Flickr.